The Pastoral Team was an organization, and the herders were no longer independent households

When Li Long came out of the office building, he found his tractor trailer filled with sugar residue, with ten large sacks piled on top, also full of sugar residue.

At the discharge outlet, sugar residue was being loaded onto a truck.

Li Long walked over, and Song Ming asked with a smile:

"Did you meet the section chief?"

"Yes, I did." Li Long smiled. "The section chief really did have something for me. You could say he was looking out for me."

"Good, then. Your sugar residue's loaded. Hurry and haul it away, or it'll freeze if you wait much longer."

"All right, get on with your work. We'll talk another time." Li Long knew time was tight, so he started the tractor, waved to Song Ming, and drove out of the Sugar Factory.

This load of sugar residue would feed the livestock and pigs at Old Ma's Place and his eldest brother's place for two or three months. Li Long planned to haul another load after delivering the sheep before New Year, which would keep them fed at least until Start of Spring.

They would slaughter another batch of livestock before New Year-at least one roe deer and the wild boar they were raising. Although they had plenty of meat at home, New Year ought to feel like New Year.

Meat was the most practical gift to take when visiting relatives at this time of year.

Even liquor fell a little short.

As Li Long puttered out of the Sugar Factory on his tractor, many of the people heading to the big pit to scoop up sugar residue looked on enviously.

But Li Long had no time to concern himself with that. He had to unload the sugar residue as quickly as possible, then tell his eldest brother